Back to School!

Today was the first student day of the 2012-2013 school year at my school.  I teach 6th grade resource, reading, English, and math.  Although I never, EVER imagined myself as a teacher, I LOVE it!!

I have a bit of a reputation (hopefully in a good way!) among the students as being a bit...quirky.  Maybe weird.  But I teach with a lot of energy, enthusiasm, and creativity.  We do a ton of active learning, and we do some impressive projects.  My students work hard and produce quality work, and I'm always so proud of their growth.  We have one-to-one technology (iPads), and I love what we get to do with them.

That said, I also know there are areas I need to improve.  Here are my professional goals for this school year:

• Improve my classroom management

• Manage paperwork responsibilities more efficiently and effectively

• Improve communication with parents

• Improve daily routines

• Consistently include active and technological learning opportunities and approach learning as student discovery rather than teacher directed

• Maintain healthier work/home balance

·      I'm excited about the plans I have in place to improve these areas.  I really think I've got things moving in the right direction.

The first day was a whirlwind, as expected, but I think this will be a neat group of kids to work with.  I' sure miss the ones that have moved on, though!  I saw a ton of former students in the halls today, and they all seem so old!  They simply aren't allowed to grow up.  But, on second thought, maybe it's rewarding to see them so mature and well-adjusted.

Now I'm home with my feet up, watching an episode of Dance Moms and relaxing for a brief moment before I get supper ready for my family.  I'll leave you with some pictures of my room!

 This view shows my reading and writing center, our resource shelves, and the doorway to the work room.

 This is one of the lap-height counters I made!  I used old shelves from home and stacked old textbooks for the supports.  I duct-taped them together and then covered them with beach-scene plastic.

 The bulletin board includes our assignment list, calendar, classroom jobs, student personal-best board, and tech procedures.

 My small group table is at the back in front of my office.  Our IA's small group table is off to the left of this picture against the side cabinets.

 After a long day of working in the room, I took a moment to try out the new counter :)

This is our time-out desk, an idea borrowed from a friend from college.  I now have a "Fair vs. Equal" poster from this great blog loaded with freebies!

 I've read that kids like to see what their teacher was like at their age...oh my!

 Writing wall

 Keys to Learning, from this I found on Pinterest...

·      And finally the giant pencil I made out of a pool noodle, based on an idea featured in Family Fun magazine.

Isn't my room fun?! :D